"Hey buddy ..." – In the hunting off-season, masters enjoy the company of their falcons, regarding them as regular pets.

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In Jilin province, a small village keeps alive Manchu tradition of falcon training

Area is growing popular among tourists

Falcon trainers spend several days in isolation taming captured birds of prey

Mingzhe Zhao, 55, is known as the "falcon king" of Ying Tun

A tiny black spot approaches from the distance in the gray dawn sky, growing larger as it glides through the icy wind against a backdrop of snow-capped mountains.

Drawn to the shrill blast of a whistle, the majestic bird of prey soars in for a perfect landing onto the arm of Mingzhe Zhao, the "falcon king" of Ying Tun.

In China's Jilin province, the tiny rural community of Ying Tun -- known here as the "Falcon Village" -- the 55-year-old Zhao has, like many of his ancestors, dedicated his entire life to training the fierce feathered creatures.

Jilin is one of China's most isolated provinces.

Deep in the northeast, Jilin borders North Korea and Russia. It's the home of China's ethnic Manchu, who continue to practice ancient traditions in an effort to preserve their culture.

This includes falcon training, which dates to the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), an era when the Manchu ruled the entire country.

Like hunting and horse racing, raising falcons -- once a form of leisure and entertainment for royals -- remains an admired practice in the region, considered a show of bravery and man's conquest over nature.

It's practiced in some form or another by most of the men in Ying Tun, which has about 300 households.

Chuanxin Jia, photographer and editor for Chinese magazine "Jilin Pictorial," has visited the Falcon Village on multiple occasions, where he captured some of the images in the gallery above.

"Trained falcons can hunt 10 to 20 pheasants per day, which can be sold for up to RMB 150 ($24) each at the local market," says Jia.